Warwick takes second at states

HANGING OUT: Warwick’s Olivia Paquet does a routine on the bars at the state championships.

(Photo by Leo van Dijk/ rhodyphoto.zenfolio.com)

HITTING THE FLOOR: Warwick’s McKenna Fritsche.

(Photo by Leo van Dijk/ rhodyphoto.zenfolio.com)

TAKING SILVER: The Warwick gymnastics team at states.

(Photo by Leo van Dijk/ rhodyphoto.zenfolio.com)

Posted
Tuesday, February 26, 2019 12:07 pm

By ALEX SPONSELLER

The Warwick co-op gymnastics team had a strong showing at the state championship last weekend at Rhode Island College, where it would finish the day with 132.20 points which was good for a second-place finish in Division II.

Warwick was led by Anna Cetera, who finished the day in the all around competition with 34.350 points. McKenna Fritsche finished the all around competition with a score of 33.050.

“I knew that we had the potential to (finish high). We showed the potential in our last home meet. We knew that we could compete with any of the teams in Division II and we hoped that that hard work in the gym would pay off that day,” said Warwick coach Rachael Macrae. “We hoped that the nerves wouldn’t get to them, we have a bit of a young team, but they showed that they could compete under pressure. Although we did have some slip ups, they really came together and pulled it off.”

Macrae was pleased with her club’s performance in the floor competition, and felt that that was the difference in the end.

“One of our most consistent events this year, although it wasn’t always our highest scoring, was bars. We were able to score consistently throughout the season. However, we were able to really show off our floor. The girls really pulled it out, they showed their personalities and got our season high on floor which was awesome,” said Macrae.

Macrae hopes that the strong finish this season will help grow the Warwick program, and continue to shed light on the gymnasts that compete in the city.

“It helps build the program and brings some publicity to the program. It will help put the sport in the back of people’s minds … a lot of people don’t even know that some schools have gymnastics teams. It’s just not as publicized as some of the other sports so I think it is great to have a such a great year this season and it sets us up for next season,” said Macrae.

Warwick also has one of the younger squads in the state, and will graduate just one senior. Macrae and company look forward to seeing the heights that this group may be able to reach in the near future.

“I look forward to working with the girls next season and seeing where we can go from here. If we made it here with such a young team, who knows where we can go,” said Macrae. “It’s only up from here.”

Cetera went on to score 8.9 points in the vault while Olivia Paquet added 8.4 points. Fritsche and Cassandra Martinez each scored 8.350 points in the event while Sophia Schobel added 8.3.

Cetera went on to score 8.6 points on bars, while Fritsche scored a 7.850 in the event. Cetera also added 8.65 points on the beam while Martinez added 7.95 and Fritsche 7.90.

Fritsche led Warwick on the floor with a score of 8.950, while Martinez finished with 8.6. Paquet also added 8.5 points and Cetera 8.2.

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